He's More Important
by winds.of.mystery
Summary: Ryoma suddenly quit tennis, is being chased by the police, and hanging around a mysterious girl... Something SERIOUS is going on. RyomaxOC. :
1. Quitting Tennis?

**Hey guys **** okay so I'm going to try to make this one really interesting okay? No promises xP**

**By the way it's not very good because I have no patience at all to edit, I always post my first drafts, but I still hope that you enjoy it xP**

**I don't own PoT or any of the characters, just one OC… actually, two… ;) you'll see!**

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" Quitting tennis! " Ryuzaki-sensei exclaimed, almost choking on the coffee that she was calmly drinking a few seconds ago. " Just that, no explanation, no… anything! "

" Gomen. " the boy replied as he looked coldly into the old woman's eyes, and proceeded to walk away.

`'`'`'`'`'

" What do you want ? " Ryoma pretended not to be completely aware of the reason of his friend's sudden anger. He pulled his cap down to hide his afeared expression, and felt cornered by the shadows of his upper classmen.

" Psssh… " Kaidoh-sempai hissed at Echizen's attempt to push them away through ignorance.

" You shouldn't say things like that, Echizen… " Momo-sempai shook his head. " You shouldn't…"

" Ochibi, I've never been so mad at you, nya~! "

" You've become a coward, pshhh…"

" You can't worry your sempais like that, you can't!"

" Ochibi, say something, nya~!"

"Ne, Echizen, we just want to know a little bit more about what's _really_ going on." Oishi-sempai confirmed the group's thoughts with his statement and an encouraging smile.

" This data may be useful…"

" Daah!" all of them jumped at the unexpected sight of Inui.

" I-Inui!" Oishi stammered. " Where did you come from?"

" We're your best friends!" Momo-sempai whined. " Please talk to us!" The silence that followed tore up the sempai's heart, and cut off the bonds that he had for so long made inumerous efforts to keep. He felt as if he was no longer considered a friend by Echizen, and with that in mind, his heart slowly turned to stone, to prevent itself from breaking.

" So that's how it's going to be. " he said in an unusually deep and serious voice. He walked away firmly, leaving a dark, gloomy atmosphere amongst those who remained.

" Echizen, you could at least have said that you didn't want to talk about it." Oishi-sempai said, well within his mother-hen spirit.

" I don't wanna talk about it. " Ryoma snapped cynically, and left four of his sempai astonished by how his attitude was colder than it had ever been.

`'`'`'`'`'

Ryoma left Seigaku that day and headed straight to the park. _I'm on time_, he thought happily, but this mood was quickly washed away by all of the other thoughts that rushed into his mind.

" There you are… " was all Echizen could manage to say at the sight of the trembling young girl, who seemed to be lost in her abstract world, driven by the silent tears that streamed down her face. She looked into the horizon as if a ghost had passed by her, and her tone of skin was now more pale than ever.

" You're thinner… " Ryoma continued, trying to break the ice that had been formed by the awkwardness of the situation. " You really have to eat, I mean, especially now and … all … "

" Don't talk about it! " the girl barked as she snapped out of her thoughts, her voice giving away the fact that she could burst into tears at any moment. Ryoma sat next to her and embraced her, and the coldness that the girl had been holding as a shield before was quickly broken.

She cried willingly into his sleeves, and there they stayed for the next four hours.

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" What are you going to do about it? "

" Ryoma, I… I'm not giving up on this… I can't…"

" You don't need to do-"

" I don't have the right to do this to a human being, Ryoma… "

" I understand. "

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**WOW that was shitty :P but I really just wanna start this off already, I mean, it's 10 PM and I'm supposed to be enjoying Orlando, and for a 3 min chapter, I consider it good… xD**

**You shall review o0 !**


	2. Abused?

**Aww I had written chap. 2 but now it's on my mom's PC and she deleted it! **

**So this is a rewrite, not like the chap. 2 I'd written before or anything, but whatever… xP**

**Once again, don't own PoT, and these are first drafts.**

**Enjoy! (surprises to come : D you guys will think you know it, but you don't, it's a GREAT SURPRISE! )**

**Review! ;)  
**

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The regulars sensed their mutual worry within each other's hearts. Words didn't have the courage to escape their lips, and they didn't need to, either. Sure, they were worried – it _had _been a month. But what could _they _do?

Occasionally, they tried to cheer each other up with lame excuses, like "He could be too sick to warn us" or "He just travelled and forgot to tell us". They all knew that Ryoma cared about tennis much more than that, despite his cold attitude.

"So… anybody seen Echizen lately?" Oishi-sempai attempted one more practice session, almost hopeless. Silence answered. It wasn't as if any hopes were destroyed, for there were none at that point.

Momo-sempai was struck with the mentioning of the name of someone who had marked his life greatly, and simply walked away. No goodbyes. No warnings. No reason.

The feelings he held back washed over him, starting as a river of mixed feelings which slowly grew to become a waterfall. He was overwhelmed by it, and the feelings came out as tears, slowly rolling down his eyes, minor compared to the feelings he truly wanted to let out.

He marched away, hiding his face as well as he possibly could. _Why do I miss him? _He thought angrily. _Come on, Momo, get over this! It's been a frickin' month! Even if you care that much, you don't know if he cares back yet…_

The lie tied up his stomach. If Ryoma cared, he would have called. Left a note. Written an e-mail. Anything.

But he was gone for good now.

`'`'`'`'`'

"Ryoma, I want you to go back to school!"

"Iie. This is more important."

"Your education is important! You don't need to be here 24/7…"

"But I want to be."

"You have to prioritize!"

"I am! This is more important."

"I understand, Ryoma,but you can take care of this anytime. Please, return to school and tennis practice."

"Demo…"

"If not for _me_, for your sempais. They must be so worried about you."

"I'll do anything for you! But…"

"Ryoma, I'd be devastated to see you throw away your future like that!"

"…"

"Ryoma, please. This will help, truly! It will help you get a job in the future, right?"

"…"

"If you don't see it _my _way, then just trust me?"

"…All right."

`'`'`'`'`'

A small figure hid itself within a hooded jacket, walking towards SeiGaku quickly with a backpack and a sports bag.

_Please don't see me, please don't ask, please don't see me, please don't ask… _Ryoma repeated in his mind, pulling his hoodie over his face, at least more than it had been before.

He was suddenly grabbed by the hoodie, and as Echizen's reflexes were about to strike the person that held him, he looked up at a stern, cold face that eyed him inflexibly.

_Ok, he saw me… _Echizen began in his mind calmly, though his heart raced at a speed that had been unknown to him before. Except for once… _But he isn't asking anything. Maybe he's here just to tell me a schedule change or-_

"Ryuzaki-sensei wants to give you another chance at tennis." He uttered heartlessly.

_Not so bad… _Echizen thought with a pang of relief.

"If you have a reasonable excuse from this past month."

_Darn it!_

_ "_Understood?"

"Hai, buchou." Echizen muttered, and fell brusquely to the floor, which his feet were barely leaning on before. He watched the tall, lean figure walk away, and smiled as his fast-beating heart slowed down.

"I can make up an excuse…" Echizen said to himself, as he walked in.

As Echizen walked down the hallway, someone had brushed his shoulder. Now, this would seem insignificant to the reader, as it is a common event in crowded, school hallways. But one fact made the difference.

That someone was Momo-sempai.

Echizen sensed that it had been on purpose. And the coldness from his favorite sempai froze him in the middle of the hallway, pale, as if he had seen a ghost.

_He's still mad?_ The thought echoed within Ryoma's mind, as he attempted to walk on, but was only able to stumble into his next class.

"Ryoma, I see that you're back." The teacher said with a smile. "You have a lot of catching… to do… homework… Monday… project…" The words faded and were swallowed by the image of Momo-sempai's face, before and now.

His face was more stern. He obviously decided to focus on exercise to forget Ryoma, and was now much bigger, leaving Ryoma – who hadn't truly exercised in a month – at another level, if the situation wasn't already so.

He'd ignored him. Completely. Ryoma couldn't blame him, but deep inside, he felt a chill just to think that things weren't fixed with time.

Usually, that's what Ryoma did – let things fix themselves up with time. But now, he'd have to take a step forward.

"Lunch already?" Ryoma said out loud, suddenly woken by the bell.

"Ryoma-samaaaa!" Tomo-chan squealed as she ran into the room. "I heard you were back! Ryuzaki-sensei is requesting you at her office!"

"Hai." Ryoma said sleepily as he dragged himself outside.

"Che, just like the old you, ne, Ryoma-samaa!"

The grey hallways felt empty to him. He'd ruined two of his best friends' lives. He couldn't fix that. What was he to do now?

"Ryoma, come in." Ryuzaki-sensei motioned him to enter. Ryoma sat at a chair that put him in a position where the desk separated them, and was met by her piercing glance of disappointment.

"I just want to know what happened." Ryuzaki-sensei began gently, keeping her firm glance. Ryoma suddenly felt revolted – who was she to ask about his personal life? Especially when something so serious happened… he didn't want to talk about it.

"Why do _you _want to know?" he shot back cynically.

"Because being gone for a month is a serious thing." Ryuzaki continued calmly, obviously recognizing the fact that Ryoma was going through a hard time. "And I'd _like _to excuse you. But I can't do that without information."

Ryoma stared at her ironically to maintain his tears – like a mask holding back his true feelings.

"What if I don't _want _to tell you?" he barked.

"Then do it to get yourself excused, ne? '' the woman joked, but her words were not received with the good humor that she uttered them with.

"I'd rather fail this year than humiliate my best friend." Ryoma suddenly froze, realizing that he'd given _too much _information.

"Then don't mention names." Ryuzaki-sensei encouraged, seeing an opening for conversation within the glacier of words that Ryoma had spoken. She saw the glacier as a mask, ready to be broken, beginning at its fault.

"I won't mention _anything._"

"Ryoma, just tell me."

"…"

"They told me I _had _to get the information from you. But I want to ask for it politely."

"Politeness doesn't change the way the situation is."

"Just tell me, Ryoma."

Ryoma stood and began, staring off at an indefinite point at the horizon and nervously walking around.

"I messed up, alright? I mean, I… I didn't _mean _to ruin anybody's lives. But the greater my intentions, the worse the situation got."

Tears welled up within his eyes.

"I wanted to make people's lives better, and I… I ended up destroying them, but I…"

At this point, Ryoma was obviously crying. The streams flowed at a faster rate, when Ryuzaki-sensei embraced him.

"Life's hard, Ryoma… but everything's going to be okay…"

"Not in the situation I'm in." he said with a ugh-can't-you-see? face. "There's no turning back. I'm stuck with this…"

He threw the hoodie he had been wearing on the floor and walked out of the room, leaving a gloomy atmosphere that weighed down on the coach's heart.

"Ryoma!" she called out and met him in the hallway. He turned to her cynically, as if knowing that she had nothing else to say and only wanted the situation to end. And that was exactly what he felt.

"I'd like to know-"

"You still don't get it!" he yelled. He was about to yell something angrily as he pointed to his own chest, but was interrupted by a feminine squeal.

"Ryoma!"

The girl that walked toward them covered her face, yet her tears streaked her hands.

"What happened?" he asked comfortingly, ignoring Ryuzaki's presence as he cupped her shoulders in his hands. Her long hair, that had covered her face previously, was brushed away by her tear-stricken hands, revealing a young, panicked and severely bruised visage.

"Nicholas found me!" she sobbed, now hiding her face again and burying it in Ryoma's chest.

Instead of sharing the warm embrace that the girl expected from him, he suddenly stormed towards the door saying, "I'm gonna call the cops."

"No!" the girl yelled as she ran up and held Ryoma by the shirt. "I can't do this to a human being." She said, lowering her voice town. A memory suddenly stopped him from walking on.

_" You don't need to do-"_

_" I don't have the right to do this to a human being, Ryoma… __"_

_" I understand. "_

"No..." Ryoma began angrily, as he held his hair firmly. "He's _abusing _you, and I won't let that happen! We have to call the cops now!"

Ryuzaki-sensei took a step back, as if blown by the words that came from Ryoma's mouth.

"Ryoma, I don't want to do this to him…" the girl continued calmly.

"I knew it… I _knew _I should've stayed home with you! We were safe for the past month, weren't we? I leave for a few hours and-"

"Ryoma, none of us expected it…"

"But you weren't safe. And you got hurt. And that's my fault. I am _so _not leaving you from now on…"

"Ryoma, _please_! I need you to have your education and your tennis car-"

"I need you to have your _life_!" Ryoma suddenly burst out, silencing the girl, as his face burned with anger. The silence that followed was striking each and every one of their hearts deeply.

"She could stay with me…" Ryuzaki-sensei began awkwardly, feeling out of place. "Then, you could have your education and she could have her safety… I only come for tennis practice anyways…"

"She'd be alone during practices, though…" Ryoma said more calmly now, acknowledging his coach's worry.

"My _God, _you guys speak as if I were _four_!" the girl yelled in disgust of the situation. "It happened _once, _it's like a _car accident_, no one has 5 or 6 in their lifetime unless they're weird!"

"He's _out _to _get you_." Ryoma uttered clearly. "It wasn't _coincidence_. He came on purpose _just _to abuse you. Do you want to stay home alone?"

The girl looked down helplessly and shook her head.

"Hey…" Ryoma began again, now the care clear in his tone as he held her upper arms. "I'm just doing this because I want you to be safe, okay? I don't mean to treat you like a kid or anything. I want your best."

The girl smiled at the floor and jumped in an embrace with the boy who cared so much about her.

"You're too sweet!" she giggled.

"See? I'm doing all of this so that I won't have to stop hearing that laugh of yours." Ryoma smiled, still holding her by the waist, with his face close enough for his breath to tickle her lips. She hugged him again, now bending both knees upward.

When they finally separated themselves from each other, Ryuzaki-sensei handed Ryoma a small item.

"I know that you don't want to be treated like a child," she began. "but I might have to hire a nanny, just for the afternoon practices. Ryoma, that's a copy of my key. Write down the address."

As the girl watched the two make arrangements, she smiled and let the tears well up in her eyes. He cared so much about her, and that moved her in many ways. She had already thought about it, but if she would spend the rest of her life with anybody, it would be him.

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**OMG this is going better than I thought! :O I know it's not **_**that **_**good, but I have the whole plot in my head now… I'll give you a hint… this was not the surprise! Just made it up to hide the surprise! X3**

**I know that you probably know… the hints are very obvious… xP and if you hadn't known before, what I just said revealed it.**

**REVIEW PLEASE! :3:3:3**


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